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voluxf x published w**Â»t.y)bt allmaxs hall tuesday march if 1806 l<o 480 in senate of the united states welfare ot the nation is the i;r:md rule : mo deration is always laudable in itsvif but tin conductors of nation ought l make use of it or.lv so far ut it is consistent with the happiness and safety of their people l'n dÂ«r this view of the sij je.o.1 can e nbmit to this stale of things i'hat is tho question i have presumed hot ; nr;d under the pre sumption 1 have brought uie subject before the st'tmte in the shape it is presented in this bill sir i wish it to be recollected that the infant state ofour navy suppresses ererjf hope of redress oh the eiementof our wrongs i that ih is a measure of iitcessitj not of choice v he re lore i ru it will not be by pressing mariners on one hand a very use lul body of men seem to be put under hard ships incoii!>i-:u-m with the umjcr and gt : . â– â€¢ v ') et government on the otln-r the r**y ol ' tlircaÂ»e cc;Â«e to mill the l>ublu to the service a this body u mci wheiiuvcr ili : safety of ibe whole calleth im t 1 think timt the crown has a right to command the service of the people when tvlf lll -' imlilic safety culk-th for ii ra j.Â«k .. r/fcfc that it hath 10 require the perÂ«uit^,l rfprvjce of every man able to i car ainis in cam oi'.gi sudtitn invasion or formi liable iiisuvimii.n i he right in both ra ins is founded on out and die bame juinci ple ut&tiefcstitji of timeout in onlcs to.tbe l>nservation ot the whole lun he adds l-'opi.c j m4.j li it be u&ked wine are the w^judged cases tjn which he rrowifletb i ' : ". i j fcle u-oy coiiÂ£jÂ«Â»eth thtu he hall not met with ont in whiol ihe le^alitj ol |'!\ vi.'ijj fop the : , a scniu !. t!i direutl onit in question lie t-s that ..; c rdii 'â– to his best apprefienst in haying tho't much upon the subj ot i lie right u impressing ninriniirs ! â– â– â€¢ th public set vice is n prcroga tne inherent in the crown grounded ujmn tfit common law and reco(,'n'iked by many bcttoiparhbment with u rreat delcrciici 10 his hnihir 1 vyould aÂ»k if any ihinjj can be cvr'.-'-c of the cornmon law but j:idicialc!ci n-mc n the poini wlritfh he atltnita are not to b foui al i will also examine the watutea on which he reftea ub recognizing â– i';s ii.;ln \ would here observe that he ipicu the soldior nnd beamen alike bound by he same law and it would post c 1 1g teem by adint seymour's comnnisbion that hispowtfsxtendcdtoimpreb ships captains musteri pilots end seamen w well ns all o iher persons fit for the bervice this was for the sen and foreign service and did not ! extend to l.ind toldicm as till the 34th year nl charks 2 all ihe landa were held by ini htÂ«ry tenures whereby the tenants wereob tigedto furnish soldiers and evtry thing ne rc-hury for them in wai ; bui by 24 r 3 34 c 2 c 12 those enures were aboliÂ»hei ami 1 rjtiestion much whether the staf charles 1 extended to tlte feudal tenants who were bound to berve only in engtunrl 1 a lumte of henry vii ['.'. h c i 11 is enacted that if hi y i . .: beinp no cnpi.uin immediately rela ntd nith the king i which shall be in vm--.s and retained or tsu any prtst to ierve the king upon the ta or upon i iimtl beynikl m-a dcpÂ«rt mit of the kind's service without licence from the captain ii shall be adjudged fi-lony the stat of henrj l 18 11 6 c 10 atfuinst dcaertion was construed to extend to soldiers found by tenure or covetiunt to serve on land â€” aiul a qiifstion wns ma<'e whether soldier who had taken prest to sent against the rebels in ireland were liable io the penalties of that law which was cleared up in parliamem in these voids that the mid stat hen vi in nil pains forfeitures and penalties did doth und hereafter shall extend as well toevery mariner and runner having taken or who hereafter shall take frest or Â«.â– <â€¢;. .-. to ierve i er queen's majesty as it did or doth to soldii is nny opinion to the contrary notuithstapding these are itu statutes from whence the right is pre tended to be inferred ; which 1 presume to to shew that the mariner und soldier must be enlisted befote n,tv are liable to the pe nalties of desertion and that it is by contract and not hv force the boldier becomes bound loÂ»ene and that ihe liydt is founded in the prostitution ol the bound of the void boy u cow inst j i i p-e i tor ii r - sense which word means " money paid to a soldier or sailor to enlist nor is it at all to ! v w on tlered at that a ri k lu founded in necessity the tyrant's plea should rest on a pretext so flimsy or that the barriers of etymology should not w'&ble to withstand as necessity ins no inw the physical force of a press gang and although this right of the sea man to be exempt fioih service but on their enlistment lias been under the ck.im of pre rogative substantially violated yet the form of the commission to impress retains the evidence ol this violation it is in these voids foÂ»t.g.l i5c wedo hereby , empower and direct jouto impress or cause to be impressed jo many seamen sec giving unto ear/h man one shilling for press money i-c thus i have shewn that british sub ' jectsarenotleptall liotnul unless they receive fies or bounty to enlist and to avoid im position it is provided by statute 5 b g \\ . 1 1 rl m c is thai no person shall be ei . inted for the land service who did not in j.-csence of a mn istrate hiph constable fcc luic hi free content to be enlikledasa soldier by impressment and i will now shew that tiny huv the m;ht of becoming american citizens and of being protected in that righ i'l'ic llulk ; vsl p l j â€¢â€¢ by the inw i 9 nature n>au ii sub^r â– â€¢< no restraints aid may pa iniu any u ;.'/,â€¢ 1 â€” [\ t 173 tern -*-. ] ily the la>v of naln:ns every subjict has iv right to tirttitrittte himself fifed sei k hit fortune where hjrtfcan best promote hit inter est [ 1 blac com sfts 1 . n 11 us and by the curnmofl inw every engluhman may icocuu the iftpftn without the kind's leave lor miy cause he pltaieth and ho tor has jiriiiiin recognised lhi right n others by i'urlibtnent â€” thai ! y the navigation net ona lmiiili (,! every hip's crew may be foreign eis ( : ; ann c s7 l'.y the statute < ;' ai n ituep fourths may bo foreign rt and by ihe statute of t.co tl 13 (.-â– <>. 2 c s it is provided that nny foreigner serving on board ol any niercimnt ship or ship ol war fur two years in tinieofwnr shall ipso l.-r l become a british subject entitled to nil i privileges of ft native born subject â€” . j i1u8 t'e see hritflin invites foreigners in to her service andsettires them in oil tlic ; 1 tilega ol her native bubjecttk among w liich jwottxtion is the nun important can it us then thai britain will ej{erÂ«ftj u ri^bi thai is not lekitimatc ? or ckum for herself what s.lie will deny to otters ! 1 iiot then she admits the right of expatriation which is c btablished by the law ofn*turei i nations and live common law nd tested by the au thority of the liiitish parliaiiu-nt n we then feel ourselves ht a low for on authority to protect those who sni nnde'r the flag of the united slates when we see britain not ' nly inviting foreigners into her sen ire but securing them prelection by the toirv.r.itj oj a statute can we then 1 soy wsuit authori ty or zeal to protect our citizens in their rights secured to them by the solemnity of a q <â– . titutit n wider the solemnity of en , a c/i mr president permit me here to obitrvi that till legitimate governments is derived from the people and is founded in compact 0 i!y und intended forthegood of the whole that protection nj allegiance are recipro cal obligations c;uli so important that irt l goveminents in all ages they have bun secured in t!>c sokmnlty f nu oath 1 ask then is not the conduct of liritrin a violation of the righuof our senmen r a e they not secured in these rights uy 1 he con rtitution and are we not bound by lli most solemn obligation to protect them to tin it ir.ost of our own â– by the law ol nations vat 251 sec !.] â€¢Â« whosoever tuesacili 2un ill indirectly offends lite stnte irli ought to protect their citiswns n iv ove reign should revenge the injuries punish the cxgressoi and if possible oblige him to j:.:ke intiresatisfixtiotti since otherwise the citizen would not obtain ihegtyat md ofthe civil as 0 iation which >â€¢> safety 1 cannot then permit myself for a ttirnent to suppose that a right so important secured by ties so solemn and so palpably violated will not l>e protected to the utmost of h power of the congress of the united state in ii the legislative means tkey possess con sistent with the sound principles of legisla tion and government jiy the constitution congress are todenne nnd punish pirncj : in defining piracy 1 wish them not if exercise a wild but legal discre tion which is tt^rir defined " to discern hy law what is juit i will therefore cull their attention to the subject as it has been consi dered by the k'w of nation â€” the common and statute law of great-britain uy the law of nations mol d j rn 67 the attack ing u ship ai s'.-:i iik taking away sonic ofthe men to make them slaves is piracy j!y tin common law 4 ijkic com 71 5 inst 109 piracy consists in committing those acts of robbery and depredation upon tbe high seas which if committed upon land would he felony 4 hi c c i every community have a tku to inflict that punishment 1 pon a pirate by the rules of self defence which an indivi dual would in k stale of nature have been 0 therwise entitled to for any invasion Â« fhi per son or property by the statute of eliza beth 43 eliz it is enacted that whoever shall hereafter without lawful authority take nny of her majesty's subjects cgnjnst their will and detain them with/oree or to make it prey or spoil ot his person or y,ods ttpon deadly feud or otherwise should be adjudg ed and taken to be a fcion nnd should suffer the pains of death without benefit ofthe cler i his statute was predicated upon a stme of things in that country not more intolera ble than tl r present kt:';e of amerirflti st men nor can it be considered r bti incor rect exercise cl tliedisr.rrtif.n ofcongrcsi n defining j.iiiiry to declare iheimpresimrrt of our seamen nd ronÂ«ign'ing rhem to so abject a muvery us tliey are subject to on board british thips of war pirney when by the law of narions by tbe common law end by the btatnteof elizabeth we discover our selves perfectly justified in so doing a1.1l 1 tro it t 1 run never find ourhelvea ivs dit po acd to protcot our citizens than britain l,i been to protect htrnibjeett nor of < '<â– â€¢ larinj that :.(â€¢â€¢ c acy committed on tbe kifh rav that britain eunsidcrs 1 felony of dtuth coiu on the lilt for the prottctiuti ar.d irtdemwjicu tion oj amtrican imen mr wisio rt r mr president â€” as intro ductory io the cottviderntlon of the merits of this billi i feel it my duty to cull the .Â»? tention of tha seniitu to thu present degrad ed state of impressed american seamen thousands of whom ijstb l)teu pressed on board llntish ships ot war ami com pel led by whips and scourges io work like galley laves whither they have bueii forced by the hand of violence from on boar.l our own hips sailing on the high seas under the fla;v of the united states carrying the spare productions of the tuil of the american plan ter and merchant to a foreign market or returning wiut their proceeds in doiti this i wish not to enlist your sympathies but only tn present to you a correct state of the facts on which ihi bill is predicated ; facts lhat stnnd recorded in the official reports of the secretury of state the black catalogue ot impressinenti i will nest present to your view tho mca burei uiioptcd by the legislature and exe cutive departments of the government of the united slates for their redress thought loo nervous w,hen tt i > cbnt>idere"d that we huxejtisi cause of mar i vrill there fore now sir proceed lq a ihe consideration yf l lie merits of thiv)>hl the first clause stages thai in violation of thi trcj'y of amity cmiin ivy and duviga tion made at london on liie 1 ; t!i n'ov 1 ' â– .'â– :, his britannic majesty had caused the im prcstmeiit of our seamen bailing under the flag of the united sl.,tcs â€” the treaty 2 vol l u s 464 secures the inviolability o the citizens and bubjcctsof the respective powers and we arc informed by the law of nations vat 655 f 39 that s nation acts ajjl.inst the nature tind essence of every treaty of pfr.ee rtny against peace itself i deliberately rnd wantdi ly offending him with whom peace has been made . and treat ing him or his subjects incompatible with peace and which lie cannot svlflef without hem wanting to himself but it may be said that this has not been authorised by the j5ritisli government let us exumine that fact it is declared by the law of ra tions vat 052 j 7 7 1 r (â€¢â€¢'.] " rh,,t imiit ver as u is impossible for the best regul tied state or for the most vigilant and absolute sovereign to modtl nt hi Â«. pleasure all the actions of his subject nnd to confine them on every occasion to uc most exact ijudi nce it would e unjust to impute to the lm tion or to th sowwgn all tha caul's of the citizens we ou%ht not to say in general thttt we have received an injury from a hdtinn because w have received it from one of its members 11 in the year i79s congress by ia\r 3 vol 333 directed agents to be appointed to reside in great-britain and in such foreign ports as the president might direct whose duty it should be to enquire into i he situ tli n of such american citizens op other sailing conformably to the law of nations under tlie protection of the american jlag who had been or should be impressed by any foreign p'.)r.-er and to endcnlv&r by all legal means to obtain their release ; an to render an ac count of all impressments and detentions to the executive of ilie united slates " â€¢ 'â€¢ they also directed the collectors of the several ports on proof being made of the citizenship at hny seaman to give him a ertlficale thereof utidei t h ipe,thai it would have been respected in foreign ports and iwve protected him from impressment this certificate acquired the name of a pro tection they also directed that every captain f a vessel in case of any of the crew being impressed sluii enter his protest at ihe first port he shall arrive with the name and re sidence of the person and transmit imme diately by post a duplicute of such proccst to the nearest hgent minister or consul ic sid it in such country and iilso on his ar rival in america to the secretary of state 11 and tint evury captain on i,i arrival at any port of the united states before he shall be admulttd to i'ii entry of his vessel shall be required by the collector to declare on oath whether any of tin crew have been impressed which he shall tr.ke under the penalty of loo dollars and the collector is bound to return ri list of all impressments so communicated to him to the secretary of ure 'â€¢ but if a timtion or its leader approves ami ratifies the act committed in ;< citizen it makes the act its own ; th offence autflit then to be attributed to thr nation is the au thor of il'.e tnie injury of which tlie citizen is perhaps only ihc instrument if the sovereign disavows ihe act he ought to imiict on the offender exemplary punishment s > far i hove called in the aid of the inw of ik.tiaiw : i will now refer to t lie form of the authority in c-.^e of impressment which is in these word i'nst <.'. i ij<i Â» in pun su.ukv i>t i :â– < maj isty's order in count : /Â» i!a teii the t'.'th day jan 7 7m we do hereby empower you to iinpress i r cause to be im pressed so many seamen he and i will refer you to the 1 1 ts in your own possession that hisflrltannfc muj sty approves the act both by convmuir.k the impressments and by his latel promoting the captain of the cmubriuh frigate whom he recalled to ap pease our â€¢ rmip lints on that head to the command ol a ship of th line so that in form it law and in fact his jritunnic ma jesty has ca.isci the impieshnx nt of our sea men or he must huv punished and not promoted so notorious un offender on iliis point 1 presume then there ran be no doubt mr prasiclent i have thoug<it it neither unproblable nor irreleveni to the present mb jc-ct to examine the right of impressing lji i t_i - 1 1 suhjcctsa british jurists how more than questioned this right and the british parliament have i presume decided tbe question sir edw coke 2 irist 17 says-the kini cannot bend any subject ngainst his v out of the realm nor even into ireland for then under pretence of semen he might scn.l him in'o banishment ["â€¢ ii p c notes 679 in hales ii p.c.itis declared " repugnant to the liberty of an englishman and irrecoiieilcable to tlie established rules of law thai ;. man without any offence by him committed or any law to authorise it should be hurried away like a criminal n-oni his friends and family and carried by force into a dangerous service in 1 799 the secretary of state is directed by law 4 vol 503 to lay before congress annually a statement of nil impresmnents reported to him that they might be ofiii tal ly ami preckel informed ot'tiit state of our impressed rearm n under these legislative provisions and the intervention of our agents appointed for that purpose hundreds of our seamen do doubt huve been discharged by the board of admi ralty while a tin tame time and under the ame authority the impressments kq>t pace with the discharges so that instead of re dressing the wrong it wiis only inflicted in routine thereby adding insult to injury this allimpoiuntsubjectiftom its commence ment has b1i been particularly attended to by the executives of the united states our ministers at london during three successive administrations have been specially charged with it and we have witnessed their diplo matic exertion to bring this lawless and cruel practice to an end but all to no effect and now we me informed by the president ot the united suites in his niess;i e of the 17ih jan last that on the impressment of our sc:inien our remonstrance have never been intermitted a hept misted bi mi mo mtnl of an arrangement hint might have bven submitted to but it oon past '. away mid the piactice though relaxed at limes in the distant seas in been constantly pursued in those in our neighbourhood 1 his mr president is the prospect pre sented to our view whereby thousands of our unfortunate seamen that hardy and in valuable clrws of citizens are consif ned to the most intolerable bon lage by the impe noun mandate of a drilish navai officer whoae word u the supreme law from which there isno appeal nnrl which gloomy pros pect we avt new informed by the highest authority there is not a spark of hope left to enlighten sir i iktvc invited you to investigate this object with the eye oi temper but at the sum u-ne ! trunt thai tl.e nation's justice will not be compromitled by exci.eilij r the bounda of moderation j for it has it limits â€¢ ml we nr informed by ihe low of nations vat 443 \ 343 that the true und just that hie common law did not athnit of such a practice must have been the opinion dt the british parliament who in the time of charles l passed a statute mr c |, c . 5 to authorise tl.e impressment of sokljera ami seamen lor ke i service pr bervice be yond bea which soon after expired beine f short duration they might alto have beerioi the same opinion i in the time of s fc :-. ann c 19 3 k 4 ann c 1 1 4 ann c 10 s ann c ! 5 6 ann c lo queen ann win n a number of statutes of a very short < uratio'i pussu in parliament in the same terms us the statute of charles above stated i pre sume they would never have punned lows io have outhoristd a proceeding that was ji i able bf the common law judge fc ter wlio is ciuotedby britons asan authority on this vr.r â– h .:] be exaii in ;. fuo c l isrr he states in the case of rrosdloot who wus indicted for lh murder of calahanj that can we il:n submit to thr exercise r>f tf is r ilprer gativt right to be inforced < n ihme sailing under lh q w of the united state without the limits of the ilritish l.mpire a practice judge blnckatonc informs us briton i ive subjniti i to with creai reluc tance ; i.'i v ; :; imoi be mid that we are wantinf lo ou ielrec ii we should no guard our it i 11 ajÂ»alnÂ«t tl is oi â– :â– ,,< !, v ,.;; the mh in vie power but it may be aid the britl h government have a right tot â€¢ er iceof her own suhjri 1 .?â€” j hare ulu ... noi wilmington gazette

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voluxf x published w**Â»t.y)bt allmaxs hall tuesday march if 1806 li-:u-m with the umjcr and gt : . â– â€¢ v ') et government on the otln-r the r**y ol ' tlircaÂ»e cc;Â«e to mill the l>ublu to the service a this body u mci wheiiuvcr ili : safety of ibe whole calleth im t 1 think timt the crown has a right to command the service of the people when tvlf lll -' imlilic safety culk-th for ii ra j.Â«k .. r/fcfc that it hath 10 require the perÂ«uit^,l rfprvjce of every man able to i car ainis in cam oi'.gi sudtitn invasion or formi liable iiisuvimii.n i he right in both ra ins is founded on out and die bame juinci ple ut&tiefcstitji of timeout in onlcs to.tbe l>nservation ot the whole lun he adds l-'opi.c j m4.j li it be u&ked wine are the w^judged cases tjn which he rrowifletb i ' : ". i j fcle u-oy coiiÂ£jÂ«Â»eth thtu he hall not met with ont in whiol ihe le^alitj ol |'!\ vi.'ijj fop the : , a scniu !. t!i direutl onit in question lie t-s that ..; c rdii 'â– to his best apprefienst in haying tho't much upon the subj ot i lie right u impressing ninriniirs ! â– â– â€¢ th public set vice is n prcroga tne inherent in the crown grounded ujmn tfit common law and reco(,'n'iked by many bcttoiparhbment with u rreat delcrciici 10 his hnihir 1 vyould aÂ»k if any ihinjj can be cvr'.-'-c of the cornmon law but j:idicialc!ci n-mc n the poini wlritfh he atltnita are not to b foui al i will also examine the watutea on which he reftea ub recognizing â– i';s ii.;ln \ would here observe that he ipicu the soldior nnd beamen alike bound by he same law and it would post c 1 1g teem by adint seymour's comnnisbion that hispowtfsxtendcdtoimpreb ships captains musteri pilots end seamen w well ns all o iher persons fit for the bervice this was for the sen and foreign service and did not ! extend to l.ind toldicm as till the 34th year nl charks 2 all ihe landa were held by ini htÂ«ry tenures whereby the tenants wereob tigedto furnish soldiers and evtry thing ne rc-hury for them in wai ; bui by 24 r 3 34 c 2 c 12 those enures were aboliÂ»hei ami 1 rjtiestion much whether the staf charles 1 extended to tlte feudal tenants who were bound to berve only in engtunrl 1 a lumte of henry vii ['.'. h c i 11 is enacted that if hi y i . .: beinp no cnpi.uin immediately rela ntd nith the king i which shall be in vm--.s and retained or tsu any prtst to ierve the king upon the ta or upon i iimtl beynikl m-a dcpÂ«rt mit of the kind's service without licence from the captain ii shall be adjudged fi-lony the stat of henrj l 18 11 6 c 10 atfuinst dcaertion was construed to extend to soldiers found by tenure or covetiunt to serve on land â€” aiul a qiifstion wns maau ii sub^r â– â€¢< no restraints aid may pa iniu any u ;.'/,â€¢ 1 â€” [\ t 173 tern -*-. ] ily the la>v of naln:ns every subjict has iv right to tirttitrittte himself fifed sei k hit fortune where hjrtfcan best promote hit inter est [ 1 blac com sfts 1 . n 11 us and by the curnmofl inw every engluhman may icocuu the iftpftn without the kind's leave lor miy cause he pltaieth and ho tor has jiriiiiin recognised lhi right n others by i'urlibtnent â€” thai ! y the navigation net ona lmiiili (,! every hip's crew may be foreign eis ( : ; ann c s7 l'.y the statute < ;' ai n ituep fourths may bo foreign rt and by ihe statute of t.co tl 13 (.-â– <>. 2 c s it is provided that nny foreigner serving on board ol any niercimnt ship or ship ol war fur two years in tinieofwnr shall ipso l.-r l become a british subject entitled to nil i privileges of ft native born subject â€” . j i1u8 t'e see hritflin invites foreigners in to her service andsettires them in oil tlic ; 1 tilega ol her native bubjecttk among w liich jwottxtion is the nun important can it us then thai britain will ej{erÂ«ftj u ri^bi thai is not lekitimatc ? or ckum for herself what s.lie will deny to otters ! 1 iiot then she admits the right of expatriation which is c btablished by the law ofn*turei i nations and live common law nd tested by the au thority of the liiitish parliaiiu-nt n we then feel ourselves ht a low for on authority to protect those who sni nnde'r the flag of the united slates when we see britain not ' nly inviting foreigners into her sen ire but securing them prelection by the toirv.r.itj oj a statute can we then 1 soy wsuit authori ty or zeal to protect our citizens in their rights secured to them by the solemnity of a q c sokmnlty f nu oath 1 ask then is not the conduct of liritrin a violation of the righuof our senmen r a e they not secured in these rights uy 1 he con rtitution and are we not bound by lli most solemn obligation to protect them to tin it ir.ost of our own â– by the law ol nations vat 251 sec !.] â€¢Â« whosoever tuesacili 2un ill indirectly offends lite stnte irli ought to protect their citiswns n iv ove reign should revenge the injuries punish the cxgressoi and if possible oblige him to j:.:ke intiresatisfixtiotti since otherwise the citizen would not obtain ihegtyat md ofthe civil as 0 iation which >â€¢> safety 1 cannot then permit myself for a ttirnent to suppose that a right so important secured by ties so solemn and so palpably violated will not l>e protected to the utmost of h power of the congress of the united state in ii the legislative means tkey possess con sistent with the sound principles of legisla tion and government jiy the constitution congress are todenne nnd punish pirncj : in defining piracy 1 wish them not if exercise a wild but legal discre tion which is tt^rir defined " to discern hy law what is juit i will therefore cull their attention to the subject as it has been consi dered by the k'w of nation â€” the common and statute law of great-britain uy the law of nations mol d j rn 67 the attack ing u ship ai s'.-:i iik taking away sonic ofthe men to make them slaves is piracy j!y tin common law 4 ijkic com 71 5 inst 109 piracy consists in committing those acts of robbery and depredation upon tbe high seas which if committed upon land would he felony 4 hi c c i every community have a tku to inflict that punishment 1 pon a pirate by the rules of self defence which an indivi dual would in k stale of nature have been 0 therwise entitled to for any invasion Â« fhi per son or property by the statute of eliza beth 43 eliz it is enacted that whoever shall hereafter without lawful authority take nny of her majesty's subjects cgnjnst their will and detain them with/oree or to make it prey or spoil ot his person or y,ods ttpon deadly feud or otherwise should be adjudg ed and taken to be a fcion nnd should suffer the pains of death without benefit ofthe cler i his statute was predicated upon a stme of things in that country not more intolera ble than tl r present kt:';e of amerirflti st men nor can it be considered r bti incor rect exercise cl tliedisr.rrtif.n ofcongrcsi n defining j.iiiiry to declare iheimpresimrrt of our seamen nd ronÂ«ign'ing rhem to so abject a muvery us tliey are subject to on board british thips of war pirney when by the law of narions by tbe common law end by the btatnteof elizabeth we discover our selves perfectly justified in so doing a1.1l 1 tro it t 1 run never find ourhelvea ivs dit po acd to protcot our citizens than britain l,i been to protect htrnibjeett nor of < ' cbnt>idere"d that we huxejtisi cause of mar i vrill there fore now sir proceed lq a ihe consideration yf l lie merits of thiv)>hl the first clause stages thai in violation of thi trcj'y of amity cmiin ivy and duviga tion made at london on liie 1 ; t!i n'ov 1 ' â– .'â– :, his britannic majesty had caused the im prcstmeiit of our seamen bailing under the flag of the united sl.,tcs â€” the treaty 2 vol l u s 464 secures the inviolability o the citizens and bubjcctsof the respective powers and we arc informed by the law of nations vat 655 f 39 that s nation acts ajjl.inst the nature tind essence of every treaty of pfr.ee rtny against peace itself i deliberately rnd wantdi ly offending him with whom peace has been made . and treat ing him or his subjects incompatible with peace and which lie cannot svlflef without hem wanting to himself but it may be said that this has not been authorised by the j5ritisli government let us exumine that fact it is declared by the law of ra tions vat 052 j 7 7 1 r (â€¢â€¢'.] " rh,,t imiit ver as u is impossible for the best regul tied state or for the most vigilant and absolute sovereign to modtl nt hi Â«. pleasure all the actions of his subject nnd to confine them on every occasion to uc most exact ijudi nce it would e unjust to impute to the lm tion or to th sowwgn all tha caul's of the citizens we ou%ht not to say in general thttt we have received an injury from a hdtinn because w have received it from one of its members 11 in the year i79s congress by ia\r 3 vol 333 directed agents to be appointed to reside in great-britain and in such foreign ports as the president might direct whose duty it should be to enquire into i he situ tli n of such american citizens op other sailing conformably to the law of nations under tlie protection of the american jlag who had been or should be impressed by any foreign p'.)r.-er and to endcnlv&r by all legal means to obtain their release ; an to render an ac count of all impressments and detentions to the executive of ilie united slates " â€¢ 'â€¢ they also directed the collectors of the several ports on proof being made of the citizenship at hny seaman to give him a ertlficale thereof utidei t h ipe,thai it would have been respected in foreign ports and iwve protected him from impressment this certificate acquired the name of a pro tection they also directed that every captain f a vessel in case of any of the crew being impressed sluii enter his protest at ihe first port he shall arrive with the name and re sidence of the person and transmit imme diately by post a duplicute of such proccst to the nearest hgent minister or consul ic sid it in such country and iilso on his ar rival in america to the secretary of state 11 and tint evury captain on i,i arrival at any port of the united states before he shall be admulttd to i'ii entry of his vessel shall be required by the collector to declare on oath whether any of tin crew have been impressed which he shall tr.ke under the penalty of loo dollars and the collector is bound to return ri list of all impressments so communicated to him to the secretary of ure 'â€¢ but if a timtion or its leader approves ami ratifies the act committed in ;< citizen it makes the act its own ; th offence autflit then to be attributed to thr nation is the au thor of il'.e tnie injury of which tlie citizen is perhaps only ihc instrument if the sovereign disavows ihe act he ought to imiict on the offender exemplary punishment s > far i hove called in the aid of the inw of ik.tiaiw : i will now refer to t lie form of the authority in c-.^e of impressment which is in these word i'nst t i :â– < maj isty's order in count : /Â» i!a teii the t'.'th day jan 7 7m we do hereby empower you to iinpress i r cause to be im pressed so many seamen he and i will refer you to the 1 1 ts in your own possession that hisflrltannfc muj sty approves the act both by convmuir.k the impressments and by his latel promoting the captain of the cmubriuh frigate whom he recalled to ap pease our â€¢ rmip lints on that head to the command ol a ship of th line so that in form it law and in fact his jritunnic ma jesty has ca.isci the impieshnx nt of our sea men or he must huv punished and not promoted so notorious un offender on iliis point 1 presume then there ran be no doubt mr prasiclent i have thougt pace with the discharges so that instead of re dressing the wrong it wiis only inflicted in routine thereby adding insult to injury this allimpoiuntsubjectiftom its commence ment has b1i been particularly attended to by the executives of the united states our ministers at london during three successive administrations have been specially charged with it and we have witnessed their diplo matic exertion to bring this lawless and cruel practice to an end but all to no effect and now we me informed by the president ot the united suites in his niess;i e of the 17ih jan last that on the impressment of our sc:inien our remonstrance have never been intermitted a hept misted bi mi mo mtnl of an arrangement hint might have bven submitted to but it oon past '. away mid the piactice though relaxed at limes in the distant seas in been constantly pursued in those in our neighbourhood 1 his mr president is the prospect pre sented to our view whereby thousands of our unfortunate seamen that hardy and in valuable clrws of citizens are consif ned to the most intolerable bon lage by the impe noun mandate of a drilish navai officer whoae word u the supreme law from which there isno appeal nnrl which gloomy pros pect we avt new informed by the highest authority there is not a spark of hope left to enlighten sir i iktvc invited you to investigate this object with the eye oi temper but at the sum u-ne ! trunt thai tl.e nation's justice will not be compromitled by exci.eilij r the bounda of moderation j for it has it limits â€¢ ml we nr informed by ihe low of nations vat 443 \ 343 that the true und just that hie common law did not athnit of such a practice must have been the opinion dt the british parliament who in the time of charles l passed a statute mr c |, c . 5 to authorise tl.e impressment of sokljera ami seamen lor ke i service pr bervice be yond bea which soon after expired beine f short duration they might alto have beerioi the same opinion i in the time of s fc :-. ann c 19 3 k 4 ann c 1 1 4 ann c 10 s ann c ! 5 6 ann c lo queen ann win n a number of statutes of a very short < uratio'i pussu in parliament in the same terms us the statute of charles above stated i pre sume they would never have punned lows io have outhoristd a proceeding that was ji i able bf the common law judge fc ter wlio is ciuotedby britons asan authority on this vr.r â– h .:] be exaii in ;. fuo c l isrr he states in the case of rrosdloot who wus indicted for lh murder of calahanj that can we il:n submit to thr exercise r>f tf is r ilprer gativt right to be inforced < n ihme sailing under lh q w of the united state without the limits of the ilritish l.mpire a practice judge blnckatonc informs us briton i ive subjniti i to with creai reluc tance ; i.'i v ; :; imoi be mid that we are wantinf lo ou ielrec ii we should no guard our it i 11 ajÂ»alnÂ«t tl is oi â– :â– ,,< !, v ,.;; the mh in vie power but it may be aid the britl h government have a right tot â€¢ er iceof her own suhjri 1 .?â€” j hare ulu ... noi wilmington gazette